Prima 38
Seaquest · Stephen Jones · 1998
Updated
The Prima 38 is a 11.62 m displacement racing yacht designed by Stephen Jones and built by Seaquest, first launched in 1998. It races in Class B.
Length
11.62 m
38′ 1″
Beam
3.82 m
Draft
2.45 m
Displacement
6.4 t
Sail area
86 m²
On the podium
Where a Prima 38 finishes when she goes racing.
0
Wins
0
Seconds
0
Thirds
4
Starts
Not enough races yet for a percentage — these are the counts so far. We keep collecting results, so this will fill in.
Read from 4 starts by 1 boat between 2015, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Prima 38 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Go4Speed Praxistraining2015
Raced one we are missing?
Report a regattaRound the buoys, or offshore
A short windward-leeward and a night at sea ask different things of a boat. Here is how this one does in each.
Round the buoys
—
Not enough data yet: no races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
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Not enough data yet: no races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a Prima 38 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Met too few times for a figure:
DK 46 (4 meetings), X-332 (7 meetings), X-34 (4 meetings), Maxfun 35 (4 meetings), First 40.7 (4 meetings), Mat 101 (4 meetings), Dehler 41 (Judel/Vrolijk) (4 meetings), First 36.7 (3 meetings), Farr 30 (3 meetings), Xp 44 (2 meetings), X-362 (2 meetings), Hanse 350 (1 meeting), Swan 48 (Frers) (1 meeting)
Speed at every angle
The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.
Upwind VMG
5.75
36°
Beam reach
8.86
90°
Broad reach
9.96
135°
Downwind VMG
8.34
170°
Speed in knots at 20 knots of true wind. Green marks the angles that pay: the closest useful beat and the deepest run worth sailing.
Where it wins and where it pays
Every boat is judged against its own measurements — length, weight, sail area. The quicker those say it should be, the more it has to deliver just to break even. Going fast is not enough: it has to go faster than its own numbers promised.
It is an upwind boat first. Windward-leeward courses give it more of what it is good at than a coastal race does.
Where it gains
Its best ground is to windward in a strong breeze, where it does more than its size and sail area promise, and by a margin worth having.
Where it pays
There is no condition where it falls away badly, which is worth something over a season of mixed weather.
Above the line it delivers more than promised and gains on the fleet. Below, it falls short. Move the wind: plenty of boats sit on one side in the light and the other when it blows.
Full width is 0.4 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the upwind.
How fast is a Prima 38
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.71 | 5.04 | 5.54 | 5.75 |
| 52° | 5.62 | 7.20 | 7.68 | 7.89 |
| 60° | 5.91 | 7.38 | 7.86 | 8.13 |
| 75° | 6.11 | 7.52 | 8.07 | 8.53 |
| 90° | 5.98 | 7.58 | 8.19 | 8.86 |
| 110° | 6.01 | 7.77 | 8.52 | 9.22 |
| 120° | 5.83 | 7.69 | 8.57 | 9.72 |
| 135° | 5.20 | 7.32 | 8.31 | 9.96 |
| 150° | 4.35 | 6.54 | 7.80 | 9.17 |
| Run VMG | 3.77 | 5.66 | 7.04 | 8.34 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. A bowsprit is standard across the fleet. Crew weight is declared around 680 kg.
Rigging
Prima 38 rig and sail dimensions
A Prima 38 carries 15.35 m of mainsail hoist on a 5.47 m boom, a forestay 15.32 m above the deck and a 5.30 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 5 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 98 to 107 m² depending on bowsprit and set-up. Before ordering a sail, read the figure on your own measurement record rather than the typical one for the design.